Recipe: Malaysian Prawn Laksa

Laksa is a beautiful Malaysian inspired prawn and noodle soup.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 10 button mushrooms, washed and quartered
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil (you can use olive oil but peanut oil is best recommended)
• 2 spring onions, sliced (separate the green and white parts and slice)
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons coriander leaves (fresh is best)
• 100 g dried Laksa noodles (thin noodles work well too)
• 1 teaspoon turmeric (becareful not to have a heavy hand with the tumeric as it can over power the dish)
• 2 teaspoons red curry paste
• 2½ cups chicken or vegetable stock (or you can make stock from the prawn shells which works well too)
• 1½ cups low fat coconut milk
• ½ teaspoon sea salt (can add more depending on your taste)
• 20 large raw prawns, peeled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat.
2. Add the white part of the spring onions and saute for about 1 minute. Add the garlic, turmeric, curry paste and cook for a further minute, stirring continuously.
3. Next, add the stock, coconut milk, sugar, salt and fish sauce and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
4. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, uncovered so some of the liquid can evaporate.
5. While the soup is simmering, soak the noodles in boiling water for 10 minutes.
6. Add the mushrooms to the soup and cook for a further 2 minutes.
7. Add the prawns and cook again for a further 2 minutes. 
8. Stir in the lemon juice.
9. Drain the noodles under cold water.  Once all the water has been drained, place the noodles in the bottom your soup bowl and sprinkle with green spring onions and fresh coriander leaves.
10. Finally ladle the laksa soup on top and top with chopped red chillies for garnish before serving.  It heightens the flavor by making the laksa spicier.